The perfect passenger

Alternate title, "we must not take counsel of our fears"

Goggles and I have been struggling with the right lead. He will pick it up after 3-4 tries, but then we careen out of the ring/corner of the field where we're working, flail left, do a flying change, and then have to be reeled back in. I told JT about these struggles. So during our lesson she got on to see if the right lead canter was a struggle because he couldn't do it or because he didn't understand. She got him to pick it up right away and then repeated it 4-5 times. "His right lead is going to be better than his left! He just didn't understand." And then I got my directions - sit back, but don't shove, left leg back, tap on the left shoulder with the dressage whip, and wait. Have a feeling of inevitability both about the right lead canter happening and then staying on a right circle. Don't fight, but have 100% certainty that these things are going to happen. Once he is in the canter "Be the perfect passenger" aka a little leg to keep him forward, but no shoving with the seat, just gently being present. 

The next ride at home was around 1 PM. I picked the best corner of the pasture, wooden fences on two sides, and we went to work there. There was a momma turkey and a bundle of babies across the fence. Goggles acknowledged their presence and then kept working. WHAT A GOOD LAD! We warmed up with the same exercise we'd started at JT's - moving his shoulders back and forth on a circle. Half the circle moving them right, half the circle moving them left and so on. Then we attempted the right lead canter. He picked it up right away and then started bucking. Ahem. I pulled him up, swallowed hard, told myself these are the choices one makes when one buys a four year old, and then tried again. This time he picked it up right away AND didn't buck, but then struggled mightily to not spin out of the circle. We failed and he turned left at the fence, did a flying change, and bucked. We repeated that, almost exactly once more. Then FINALLY, I looked the direction I wanted to go, not AT the fence, sat back, and used my outside aids. And he turned!!! We did a right lead canter circle!!! GOOD BOY!!!!! 

I'm pretty certain I almost got heat stroke from that. But we did it! 

He'd had quite a few rides in a row, so the next day I put him in the rope halter and we played over the ditch and a few jumps in the field and worked on woah. He was so happy and pleased with himself. I then put him in the ring and asked for the right lead canter. He picked it up right away and managed a circle on the line. GOOD BOY! We repeated that about three times and then called it quits for the day.

Then he had three days off. This morning we were back at it. He started out like a four year old who had had three days off. So we did less moving shoulders and more walk-trot-walk-trot-walk-trot.... etc etc. We started with the left lead when we cantered. He was mostly good but threw in a few bucks for funsies. I did a better job of being the best passenger and ignoring the squirreling around under me. At one point he did a left to right flying change, so that's fun that that is there too. Once he settled, we switched directions and went right. He picked it up immediately AND we did a full right circle. Hooray!!!!!! Sooooo many pats and good boys and I hopped off  as soon as we made it back to a halt. I'm hoping he will be less fizzy tomorrow so we can keep working on that. 

Look who it is! Full post coming later on the pedigree report BreedRideEvent did! 

Ben and I had a lesson both mornings this weekend. That and full work days are why Goggles had the whole weekend off (also more coming later on two horses in two spots). On Saturday, JT warmed him up and then I got on. On Sunday, I started out with him. She's out of town this whole week, so we're moving back towards me doing more with him. He MUST keep his body soft and moving the whole time. We've sloooooowweed things down a lot so that he can't use speed against us to stiffen and brace through his mid-section. But the slow is not a slug feeling, it is a soft, bouncing, supple feeling. 

His walk warm up is a lot of leg yields, baby half pass, shoulder in, and haunches in. To the right I FINALLY got the feel. Left rein to slow the left shoulder down, then right leg to move his barrel over. If he doesn't listen, spur in to say MOVE your right hind, keep your shoulders straight to the short side. It is soooo hard for both of us, but also soooo good for both of us. Funny how that works. Once he is softly doing all this at the walk, then trot. If he spooks at things, slooooooooow the trot down. Post like molasses, dragging my butt out of the saddle with very little energy. Take the energy down. And do 8m circles by what he is spooking by, turning back towards it each time, until he is not spooking at it anymore. Leg yields to and from the rail, sloooowing it down so it is correct and he is moving OVER with his hind leg, truly crossing it. Baby half pass by going down the quarter line, pointing his face towards the rail, then keeping his shoulders pointed at the short side, and moving the hind legs OVER. 

Canter he has to be allowed to move forward, I have to supple my elbows more to follow. But again, be the perfect passenger. Don't drive with the seat.  Use leg to help him move his back. To the left, I needed to move his shoulders a little left with my right leg forward. Then move his barrel to the right with my left leg in a mid-range position. Then his back moved my spine in an S shape as the canter flowed. Lots of shoulder fore on the left lead. If he gets tight and running and bracing, 10m circle. 

The WHOLE time he can have the weight of the rein and one ounce more. Nothing more than that. 

He's pretty bummed that my threats of him becoming a pasture pet were apparently empty threats